St. John wolf cubs, c.1940, Silver Halide Print, 205×150 mm, Unknown Photographer, PhotoMuse Collection, 2018, Donation of Dr. Unni Krishnan Pulikkal, Source – Herbert Ascherman Collection.

The Wolf Cub program was originated by ‘The Boy Scouts Association’ in the United Kingdom in 1916 to provide a program for boys who were too young to be Boy Scouts. It is a program designed for boys in grades 1-5 depending on the national organization to which they belong. It emphasizes the core Boy…

Seth (Banya), 1890, Gelatin Silver Print, 195×130 mm, Unknown Photographer, PhotoMuse Collection, 2018, Gift of Dr. Unni Krishnan Pulikkal, Source – Herbert Ascherman Collection.

Banya is an occupational community of merchants, bankers, money-lenders, dealers in grains or in spices, and in modern times numerous commercial enterprises. The term is used in a wider sense in Bengal than it is elsewhere in India. The gelatin silver process is the photographic process used with currently available black-and-white films and printing papers.…

Portrait of Sri. K. Karunakaran, 2005, Archival Pigment Print, 170 x 170 mm, Photographer – Mr. Herbert Ascherman Jr., PhotoMuse Collection, 2019, Gift of Dr. Unni Krishnan Pulikkal

K. Karunakaran (1936-2016) was born in Alappuzha, Kerala, southern India. He was a technician and began assisting his father Kunju Kunju Bhagavatar in the making and repairing of musical instruments at the age of 16. His tryst with cameras began when he was asked to repair the bellows of a torn field camera in 1942.…

Portrait of an American, c.1880, Cabinet Card, 108 x 165 mms, Photographer- Forshew, N.Y., PhotoMuse Collection, 2018, Donation of Dr. Unni Krishnan Pulikkal, Source – Herbert Ascherman Collection.

The cabinet card was a style of photograph which was widely used for photographic portraiture after 1870. It consisted of a thin photograph mounted on a card typically measuring 108 by 165 mm (4 1⁄4 by 6 1⁄2 inches). It was usually made of an albumen print, The cabinet card was larger and usually included…

Portrait of a Young woman, c.1880, Cabinet Card, 108 x 165 mms, Photographer- Achley, Rockford, PhotoMuse Collection, 2018, Gift of Dr. Unni Krishnan Pulikkal, Source – Herbert Ascherman Collection.

The cabinet card was a style of photograph which was widely used for photographic portraiture after 1870. It consisted of a thin photograph mounted on a card typically measuring 108 by 165 mm (4 1⁄4 by 6 1⁄2 inches). It was usually made of an albumen print, The cabinet card was larger and usually included…

Portrait of an American, c.1870, Tintype, 105 x 65 mm, Unknown Photographer, PhotoMuse Collection, 2018, Donation of Dr. Unni Krishnan Pulikkal, Source – Herbert Ascherman Collection.

A tintype, also known as a melainotype or ferrotype, is a photograph made by creating a direct positive on a thin sheet of metal coated with a dark lacquer or enamel. There are two historic tintype processes: wet and dry. In the wet process, a collodion emulsion containing suspended silver halide crystals had to be formed…

Portrait of three Women, c.1870, Tintype, 90 x 60 mm, Unknown Photographer, PhotoMuse Collection, 2018, Donation of Dr. Unni Krishnan Pulikkal, Source – Herbert Ascherman Collection.

A tintype, also known as a melainotype or ferrotype, is a photograph made by creating a direct positive on a thin sheet of metal coated with a dark lacquer or enamel. There are two historic tintype processes: wet and dry. In the wet process, a collodion emulsion containing suspended silver halide crystals had to be formed…

Mini Spy Camera, 1950, PhotoMuse Collection, 2018, Gift of Dr. Unni Krishnan Pulikkal, Source – Herbert Ascherman Collection.

This Miniature Spy Camera was a unique import from Hong Kong during the 1950s and 1960s. It can “hide in the palm of the hand”; sometimes called a vest pocket camera. This particular model was made in Hong Kong. It has an actual glass lens, viewfinder, shutter, advance film wind-up knob, and comes with a small…

Киев (Kiev) 60 TTL, 1984-1999, SLR Camera, PhotoMuse Collection, 2015, Donation of Mr. Balan Madhavan.

Kiev 60 is a medium format SLR film system camera manufactured by Kiev, Ukraine, in the former USSR. It was produced between 1984-1999. Kiev, the English Romanization of Киев, is the capital of Ukraine. The cost of the Kiev 60 and its Pentacon Six lens compatibility make it a value-oriented camera for amateur photographers interested…